Updates from Dutchess County Business Network:
·The New York Small Business Development Council has created a website designed to help businesses navigate the Economic Injury Disaster Loan process. It can be found HERE.
·Governor Cuomo has created a new website that will be used to update individuals and businesses on the new paid leave measures. The page is still in it's basic stages but updates are expected. It can be found HERE.
·Governor Cuomo requested the federal government relief for more categories of workers. This would include unemployed gig economy workers, farmers, independent contractors and others. For more information, please read THIS ARTICLE.
·For information on the liquor authorities guidance on the sale of delivery and to-go alcoholic beverages, clickHERE.
·If you are forced to reduce your employees' pay during this downturn, you would still be required to provide that employee a new Wage Acknowledgement Form. For model versions of the form, please seeHERE. Additionally, if you are forced to lay off an employee, you must provide them with the required Record of Employment.
·Part of the stimulus package being proposed at the federal level will boost the SBA's 7A program. The 7A program will be managed by local SBA lender banks. So the advice to local businesses and nonprofits is to compile all of your financial documents as you would to secure any loan. Please note that it will take a few days for the SBA to provide all required information to SBA lender banks about the 7A program AFTER it is signed into law. They DON’T have ANY information at this time.
·The way the legislation is structured 7A loans will be eligible to “forgive” costs associated with payroll, utilities, mortgages, rents, and debt payments. There will be a cap on the amount that can be forgiven but that is not yet known. This means these 7A loans are more like grants and are designed to allow employers to retain employees.
·The 7A program will be for businesses and nonprofits with less than 500 employees and does cover self-employed or sole proprietors adversely impacted by COVID 19. The fees for the 7A program will be waived. As more information is released, we will provide links and more information. This may change as the legislative process continues, but we wanted to inform you on what is currently being considered.
On Monday March 30, at 9AM, Patterns for Progress will host a web panel as they discuss how the housing industry has been impacted by COVID-19. They will discuss how real estate transactions, lending, and title processing has been affected by this crisis, and what that means for Homeowners, Buyers, Sellers, Landlords, tenants, and employers in this industry. You can watch this webinar on March 30, at 9AM on their FACEBOOK PAGE.